Matthew 14:29-31 - Victorious Faith Comes From Jesus.
Matthew 14:29-31 - Victorious Faith Comes From Jesus.
Matthew 14:29-31 (KJV) And he said, Come. And when Peter was
come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus. 30
But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to
sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me. 31 And immediately Jesus
stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of
little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?
Matthew 14:29-31 (CWR) Over the noise of the storm, Jesus
replied, "Come!" So Peter jumped over the side of the boat and into the
waves. He found that he, too, could stand on the water! Then with his
eyes on the Lord, he started walking toward Jesus. 30 "Peter began to
feel proud and turned to look at his fellow disciples. When he looked
back toward Jesus, a huge wave came between them. Suddenly Peter
became afraid. He started to sink and cried out, "Lord, I'm going down!
Please save me!" 31 Jesus reached out, grabbed Peter's outstretched
hand and pulled him back up. He said, "Why did you lose faith and
begin to doubt? You need to keep your eyes on me."
He walked on the water. Peter stepped out of that boat in faith.
It was faith that now sustained him on the waters of Galilee and
gave him buoyancy. But faith was active only so long as he kept his
gaze fixed on Jesus. [SDA Bible Commentary]
Saw the wind. Apparently Peter had forgotten, for the moment,
the wind and the waves. As his feet became accustomed to walking on
the surface of the water he evidently thought of his companions in
the boat, and wondered what they thought of his new-found skill.
Turning his glance momentarily back to the boat, he lost sight of Jesus.
At that moment he was in the trough between two waves, and when he
returned his gaze again to where Jesus had been he could no longer see
Him. All he could see was the turbulent water and the wind. In that
brief instant self-satisfaction had diluted faith with pride, so to
speak, and faith lost its sustaining power. [SDA Bible Commentary]
He was afraid. We need never fear so long as we keep our eyes
upon Jesus and trust in His grace and power, but when we turn our
gaze upon self and upon others we have good reason to be afraid. [SDA
Bible Commentary]
Immediately. There is no delay on God's part to respond to the
sincere prayer for deliverance from the waves of temptation that ever
and anon sweep over the soul. [SDA Bible Commentary]
Thou of little faith. In love Jesus first saved Peter, and then
rebuked his lack of trust. He did not censure Peter for essaying to walk
on the waves, but for letting go of faith. [SDA Bible Commentary]
Peter was not putting Jesus to the test, something we are told
not to do (Matthew 4:7). Instead he was the only one in the boat to
react in faith. His impulsive request led him to experience a rather
unusual demonstration of God's power. Peter started to sink because he
took his eyes off Jesus and focused on the high waves around him. His
faith wavered when he realized what he was doing. We may not walk on
water, but we do walk through tough situations. If we focus on the
waves of difficult circumstances around us without looking to Jesus
for help, we too may despair and sink. To maintain your faith when
situations are difficult, keep your eyes on Jesus' power rather than on
your inadequacies. [Life Application SB]
Jesus' presence in the storm caused Peter to exercise a fearless
faith. Peter overcame his fear and attempted the impossible. But notice
that he did so only with Jesus' command to come. Notice also that he
asked only to do what Jesus was doing; that is, he wanted to share in
Jesus' power, some of which the disciples had already been experiencing
(10:1). (The Life Application Commentary)
Although we start out with good intentions, sometimes our faith
falters. This doesn't necessarily mean we have failed. When Peter's faith
faltered, he reached out to Christ, the only one who could help. He was
afraid, but he still looked to Christ. When you are apprehensive about
the troubles around you and doubt Christ's presence or ability to
help, you must remember that he is the only one who can really help.
[Life Application SB]
Jesus' immediate response showed Peter that divine undergirding
and power are present in times of testing. Jesus caught Peter,
saving him from drowning in the waves. Peter had taken his eyes off
Christ and was focusing instead on his situation. Jesus' question
focused on why Peter allowed the wind and waves to overwhelm his faith.
He momentarily despaired and so began to sink. His doubt became his
downfall. (The Life Application Commentary)
Unless he makes it his life business to behold the uplifted
Saviour, and by faith to accept the merits which it is his privilege to
claim, the sinner can no more be saved than Peter could walk upon the
water unless he kept his eyes fixed steadily upon Jesus. Now, it has
been Satan's determined purpose to eclipse the view of Jesus and lead
men to look to man, and trust to man, and be educated to expect help
from man. For years the church has been looking to man and expecting
much from man, but not looking to Jesus, in whom our hopes of eternal
life are centered. {TM 93}
Hebrews 12:2-3 (CWB) Look to Jesus, the author and perfecter of
our faith who, for the joy which will come when He receives us,
endured the cross, scorning its shame and disgrace, and ascended to
heaven to sit at the right hand of God. 3 If you stop to think what He
went through and what hatred He had to endure from sinners, you
wouldn't become so disheartened and feel like giving up your faith.
Luke 18:1 ... men ought always to pray, and not to faint;
CLOSING THOUGHT WITH ILLUSTRATION
General Ioannis Metaxas, dictator of Greece from 1936 until
his death in 1941, once traveled to a Mediterranean air base to do a
formal inspection. While there, he was invited to tryout a flying boat.
Excited to experience the new technology, he decided to pilot it
himself.
Everything went well until the commander, the dictator's
host, noticed that they were about to make a landing on the regular
runway.
"Excuse me, General, but it would be better to come down on
the sea - this is a flying boat."
"Of course, Commander. What was I thinking?" said Metaxas,
suddenly collecting himself. He proceeded then to make a safe landing on
the water.
Rising from the wheel, the general said, "Commander, I
greatly appreciate the tact with which you drew my attention to the
incredible blunder I nearly made." Saying that, he opened the door - and
stepped into the sea.
Like the general, another impetuous man once stepped out of a
boat and onto the sea. His name was Peter. We often criticize Peter
for eventually sinking because his faith weakened. But I sometimes
think we judge Peter too harshly, because the Bible records that he
walked on top of the water almost all the way to Jesus.
That's amazing! I think I would have sunk on the first step.
I can't imagine actually walking on water for even a few steps.
But Peter did. Then he took his eyes off the Savior, saw the storm
raging around him, and sank like the "rock" he was. Who wouldn't?
We all "sink" at times, but if we know the Savior, he will
always be there to reach down and save us. All we have to do is call
out to him, and he will rescue us.
Heavenly Father, we need you to save us, because without you
we will surely drown in the sea of our sins. Keep us close to you,
Lord, Amen. [The One Year Devotional of Joy and Laughter by Mary
Hollingsworth]
SPECIAL VIDEO CLIP ON SEEKING GOD:
http://vimeo.com/31489782
LINKS FOR BIBLE STUDY GUIDES:
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EXCELLENT BIBLE PROPHECY SERIES BY DR RON CLOUZET:
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